FREE ESSAY ON OEDIPUS THE KING

OEDIPUS THE KING

Sometimes humans try to avoid their inevitable destiny for their lives; there are moments
that we may think of ourselves as invincible and smarter than what is already decided.
There may also be a point when making a decision leads to a great error in judgment. In
Oedipus the King, written by Sophocles, both of these problems are noticed in the
character, Oedipus. They are known as tragic flaws. A tragedy must have the character to
have a flaw in his hamartia. Oedipus' single flaw that is pointed out is hubris,
excessive pride. A single flaw can allow a man to be defeated. 
Oedipus the King is a tragedy. A tragedy is a play that portrays a conflict between human
beings and some superior, overwhelming force. It ends sorrowfully and disastrously, and
the outcome seems inevitable. In a tragedy, the hero is upper class that is capable of
suffering. He is neither good nor bad. Due to the flaws in his actions and behaviors, he
will have everything and lose it all. He is the hero and king of Thebes, but because of
his fate, he ends up being blind in exile.
Oedipus runs from his own homeland including his mother and father. He is trying to
escape his fate. The gods above told him that he would, in his future, kill his father
and marry his mother. By moving somewhere else, he believes his parents will be safe from
him. Someone told him that Polybus and Merope were not his real parents so he asked them,
but they lied telling him they were. Oedipus still has doubts so he goes to Delphi where
he is told the truth, but not the identity of his real parents. He flees Corinth where
his parents are in order to avoid the prophecy.
Oedipus leaves Corinth and heads in the opposite direction towards Thebes. On his
journey, a chariot tries to run him of the road. He became very angry, which causes him
to become violent so he kills Laius and the men who are with him. One man escaped the
wrath of Oedipus and fled back to Thebes. Although he does not know Laius was his father,
he is one step closer to fulfilling the prophecy. 
Oedipus is on the path close to the town of Thebes where this is a Sphinx who kills
people who cannot answer her riddle. Oedipus succeeds in solving the riddle, causing the
Sphinx to destroy herself. He is received with enthusiasm by the Thebans that just lost
their king. The Thebans make him king and he marries Jocasta who was married to the late
Laius. He is ignorant in knowing that not only has he killed his father, but also now, he
has married his mother. Oedipus sinks low because of his tragic flaws, his actions, and
his inability to dance around one's fate.
There is a plague in the land, so Oedipus wants it to go away, so he sends Creon to
Delphi to find out what to do. Creon is Jocasta's sister and his brother-in-law. Apollo
shot an arrow, which caused the plague because Laius' death went unsolved. Apollo wants
the killer(s) paid back for the murder. Oedipus wants to find the murderer, so he says
that whoever killed Laius will be exiled or killed. Someone tells Oedipus to send for
blind Tiresias who knows everything. 
Tiresias does not want to tell Oedipus the truth, but Oedipus keeps harassing Tiresias
even threatens him with torture. Finally, he tells Oedipus the truth but Oedipus does not
want to believe the truth. Oedipus shows an error in judgment when he disregards
Tiresias' warning. He is too hardheaded to listen to what Tiresias has to say to him. In
doing this, he creates his own downfall. He disregards all the information given to him
because he thinks that he can control his destiny.
A servant announces to the king and his people that Jocasta was dead. She hung herself in
her bedroom when she figured out that her husband was really her son. Her four children
were by her first born who she thought was dead. Oedipus sees his mother/wife's body he
pulls to pins out of her dress and gouges his eyes out with them. He does this several
times, causing blood to drip down his face and on his beard. He could not bear to see the
damage that his life had caused.
Oedipus keeps his word of punishing the murderer of Laius. He is sent in exile to
Cithaeron where as a baby he was to have been left. He does not know if he will die there
are not because he realizes now that the gods are in control of his destiny. Apollo takes
away the plague, since the murder of Laius was solved and punishment had been served. 
Oedipus was on top of the world and he literally lost everyone and everything that he had
loved. He tried to avoid his fate but it was meant to be, so it happened. It does not
make sense why his fate must be so terrible, but it could have to do with his single
flaw. Oedipus never did anything that bad to deserve such a horrible life. At least he
was man enough to realize that it was not only Apollo's fault, but his too. He lost some
of his hubris throughout this horrible event. This all took place in one day at the
palace in Thebes. Everyone has a downfall, some just have farther to fall than others do.